


Harry Potter and the Tall, Dark Stranger

by originella



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Accidental Bonding, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - Regency, Alternative Universe - Nobility, Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Bottom Harry Potter, Courtship, Dumbledore is alive, F/M, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Fluff and Smut, Good Draco Malfoy, Good Gellert Grindelwald, Good Lucius Malfoy, Good Severus Snape, Love at First Sight, M/M, May/December Relationship, Mpreg, No Battle of Hogwarts, Possessive Severus Snape, Potions Master Horace Slughorn, Regency, Regency Romance, Rimming, Romantic Fluff, Severus never taught at Hogwarts, Sirius is Dead, Soul Bond, Soulmates, Strangers to Lovers, Teenage Pregnancy, Top Severus Snape, Virgin Harry Potter, alternating pov, alternative universe, betrothal, lily and james are dead, snarry
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-05
Updated: 2020-11-05
Packaged: 2021-03-09 03:07:32
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 11,788
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27397684
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/originella/pseuds/originella
Summary: December, 1782. Eighteen-year-old Harry Potter, Marquess of Godric’s Hollow, is summoned to Malfoy Manor to celebrate the engagement of Lord Draco Malfoy and his adopted sister, Miss Ginny Weasley. Along with him are his adopted brother, Master Ron Weasley, and Ron’s own betrothed, Miss Hermione Granger. While there, he meets Severus Snape, Duke of the House of Prince, and sparks immediately fly.Thirty-nine-year-old Severus Snape, Duke of the House of Prince, is disillusioned when it comes to love as well as the romances all around him. He has been made famous in the Wizarding World for singlehandedly creating the cure to lycanthropy, but he finds that he is just beginning to grow lonely in his personal life. When he unexpectedly meets Harry Potter at his godson’s engagement celebration, Severus is shocked by the unexpected attraction.Determined to solidify this bond, Harry and Severus make love that evening, after sharing a dance and the engagement feast together. However, a misunderstanding separates them, leading Harry to believe that he is not wanted by the man anymore. Will they finally find a way to come together at last?
Relationships: Aberforth Dumbledore/Poppy Pomfrey, Albus Dumbledore/Gellert Grindelwald, Alicia Spinnet/Fred Weasley, Andre Egwu/Charlie Weasley, Angelina Johnson/George Weasley, Ariana Dumbledore/Kennilworthy Whisp, Arthur Weasley/Molly Weasley, Audrey Weasley/Percy Weasley, Cho Chang/Cedric Diggory, Daphne Greengrass/Blaise Zabini, Draco Malfoy/Ginny Weasley, Fleur Delacour/Bill Weasley, Hannah Abbott/Ernie Macmillan, Harry Potter/Severus Snape, Hermione Granger/Ron Weasley, Lee Jordan/Patricia Stimpson, Lucius Malfoy/Narcissa Black Malfoy, Mandy Brocklehurst/Justin Finch-Fletchley, Michael Corner/Lisa Turpin, Minerva McGonagall/Horace Slughorn, Neville Longbottom/Luna Lovegood, Past Cedric Diggory/Harry Potter, Remus Lupin/Nymphadora Tonks, Seamus Finnigan/Dean Thomas, Susan Bones/Anthony Goldstein, Theodore Nott/Pansy Parkinson, Vincent Crabbe/Gregory Goyle, one-sided Oliver Wood/Harry Potter
Comments: 7
Kudos: 238





	Harry Potter and the Tall, Dark Stranger

**Author's Note:**

  * For [oliversnape](https://archiveofourown.org/users/oliversnape/gifts).



The annual masked ball at Malfoy Manor was the highlight of the Wizarding Season, except this year was to be a particularly special occasion. This year, the eighteen-year-old heir to the Earldom of Malfoy was announcing his engagement to young Ginevra Weasley, whom he had met while attending Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. The fiery redhead, while not coming from an exceptionally wealthy family, was a fellow Pureblood, and just the thing to keep young Lord Draco Malfoy on his toes. His mother, the Countess of Malfoy, absolutely adored Ginevra, and, although it had taken a bit for the Earl of Malfoy to calm down at the lack of a dowry from the young girl, even he had to admit that she was perfect for his son.

Many people of the varying classes of the Wizarding World would be attending the ball, which was always thought to be quite a fun evening. Ginevra’s next eldest brother, Ronald, was bringing his fiancée as well, Miss Hermione Granger; Ginevra had six elder brothers in total, and they each had varying occupations within the Wizarding World. Her eldest brother, Master William, worked in the Wizarding Bank of Gringotts, alongside his wife, Fleur, who was taking some time off to raise their first child, daughter Victoire. Second son, Charles, worked for the dragon preserve in Romania and was quite married to his career, while third son, Percy, worked for the Ministry of Magic, and was courting Miss Audrey Hayhurst, who worked as an apprentice in Madam Malkin’s Robes for All Occasions in Diagon Alley. Fourth and fifth sons, twins Fred and George, had their own shop in Diagon Alley, Weasley’s Wizard Wheezes, and were respectively courting Quidditch star Miss Alicia Spinnet, and healer Miss Angelina Johnson respectively.

Ronald and Hermione’s best friend, Harry Potter, had come into the care of the Weasley family when he was eleven-years-old. His parents had died unexpectedly of the Wizard’s Flu Epidemic of 1775 – 1776, just before he was due to begin at Hogwarts. The headmaster, Viscount Albus Dumbledore, issued a proclamation that young Harry, who, at the time, was himself the heir to the title of Marquess of Godric’s Hollow—a small wizarding village in the West Country—was due to inherit the title upon the occasion of his eighteenth birthday, was in need of some form of guardianship. Such a position would have typically fallen to his godfather, Sirius, Lord of the House of Black at Grimmauld Place, but the man had passed away as well some time ago. The second person would have been Remus Lupin, Baron Lupin, but he was a single man, and not seen as an appropriate candidate. As such, Squire Arthur and Dame Molly Weasley of the Burrow in Ottery St. Catchpole were selected, given Harry’s close friendship with young Ronald, and the adoption, with Headmaster Dumbledore’s support, went through shortly thereafter.

Harry himself stood in front of the Venetian glass mirror inside his bedroom in his inherited cottage in Godric’s Hollow. It was one of the smaller properties, but, this way, he could easily keep an eye on the small town which had been entrusted to him by his mother and father. Biting his lower lip, Harry tried his best to calm his hair into submission, but it did no good. His bottle-green dress robes matched his eyes, and he had bought a new black mask for the occasion. He had turned eighteen nearly five months previously, and so he was no longer under the guardianship of Arthur and Molly Weasley. He had also finished his studies at Hogwarts a month before his eighteenth birthday, but he still had no idea what he wanted to do with his life. He had more money than he could ever spend in a dozen lifetimes, so he had set up a fair few charitable organizations following his meeting with the goblins at Gringotts to discuss his inheritance.

As he rolled his shoulders, giving up upon his hair, a small little pop sounded from behind him, which directly caused Harry to turn around. “Yes, Dobby?” he asked, smiling down at the house-elf which he had gotten during his second-year, after inadvertently freeing the elf from the Earl of Malfoy himself.

“Master Harry Potter sir has guests!” the elf squeaked, his ears flapping furiously. “Master Ronald Wheezy and Miss Hermione Granger are in the parlor!”

Harry smirked inwardly, secretly pleased with himself that some matters never changed, and that Dobby always called Ron ‘Master Wheezy’. “Thank you, Dobby,” Harry said, pulling his cravat straight and nodding his head. “I’ll be down promptly.”

Dobby nodded, popping away as Harry let out a sigh.

“ _Nox_ ,” Harry whispered, and the candles situated throughout the master bedroom suite at the cottage extinguished themselves as he stepped out of the bedroom. He made his way down the corridor, hearing Hermione softly reprimanding Ron as he advanced down the staircase and made his way directly into the parlor. “Have you touched the fruit platter again?” Harry asked, eying up his best friend, who was literally caught red-handed, his hand in the bowl of sugared fruit that Dobby always prepared around the holidays.

Hermione, immaculate in a set of pink dress robes, swatted Ron upon his shoulder. “I _told_ you that Harry would notice, Ronald!” she hissed, rolling her eyes as she traipsed over to Harry herself, and pressed a kiss onto his cheek. “Are you feeling all right about the upcoming festivities evening, Harry?” she asked, a fair amount of concern in her voice, and shook her head in dismay, pulling his cravat into a different position. “You know how you get when you’re around crowds...”

“The Malfoy family have been in the top-tier of Wizarding society for generations,” Ron said, his mouth full of the aforementioned fruit, and Hermione rolled her eyes.

“We _know_ that, Ron,” she said, annoyance peppering her tone. “Had you bothered to read _Hogwarts: A History_...”

“I know that Baroness Bagshot is going to be at the manor this evening,” Harry said quickly, interrupting Hermione, so that his two closest friends wouldn’t be arguing.

“Naturally,” Hermione said, smoothing down the non-existent ruffles of her skirts. “She was her nephew’s guardian for much of his later adolescence, and, seeing that Viscount Dumbledore and his husband, Viscount Grindelwald, are invited as well, it would have been seen as an oversight if she was not,” she explained primly.

“How do you know all this, ‘Mione?” Ron asked, genuinely curious.

“What do you mean, Ron?”

“Well, you’re a Muggleborn, and things in the Muggle World are usually done a bit differently than that of the Wizarding World...”

“Politeness in society isn’t so different between the two,” Hermione snapped, her brown eyes flaring with annoyance. “And besides, you know very well that my father is Lord Granger, so lectures on breeding and the like were not foreign concepts to me, far before I entered the Wizarding World for the first time.”

Ron rolled his eyes, hating it when Hermione got like this, and turned his attention back to Harry, who was rolling on the balls of his feet. “Everyone’s pairing up now,” he said casually, for the announcement of the impromptu wedding of their schoolmates, Dean Thomas and Seamus Finnigan, plus the engagement as the term had begun of Neville Longbottom and Luna Lovegood, had been all over _The Daily Prophet_ and _The Quibbler_ respectively. “Do you think you’ll find someone, Harry?”

“He doesn’t need to, Ron, if he doesn’t want to,” Hermione said quickly.

“I would like to,” Harry said softly, a small smile pulling at his lips. Ever since his relationship with Cedric Diggory had fallen through during his fourth-year and Cedric’s seventh, with Cedric spurning Harry in favor of fifth-year Cho Chang, he was feeling more than a little lonely. Even the announcements of Cedric and Cho’s wedding, plus the birth of their twins—Georgiana and Adolphus—had saddened him all the more. “Perhaps tonight will be the night,” he said, although he very much doubted it.

“That’s the spirit, mate!” Ron crowed.

Hermione rolled her eyes. “Boys,” she murmured, before turning around and making her way towards the Floo.

~*~

Severus Snape, Duke of the House of Prince, would be one of the few members of Wizarding society that outranked his hosts that evening. Ever since his mother had married a broken-down baronet drunkard and disgraced the House of Prince, she had been cut out of the will. However, when Severus himself turned seventeen, he had received a letter from his grandfather, Edward, the former Duke of the House of Prince, who had informed him that Eileen, Severus’s mother, had been his only child and, therefore, since she herself was now gone as well, and that he himself was now on his own death bed, everything he had would go straight to Severus. It had been done, and Severus had taken up the mantle of duke, plus residence at Prince Hall, following his graduation from Hogwarts.

Severus brushed the dust he imagined was caked to his dress robes off from his person, and pursed his lips. Despite his relatively high social standing, he was not fair of face, which was an additional attribute people seemed to look for in their partners. As such, Severus was in his late-thirties and, apart from a smattering of discreet affairs here and there, he had not found a person suitable to settle down with. Lucius, his dearest friend and the host of the festivities that evening, had tried more than once to introduce him to eligible gentlemen; he knew of his friends’ preferences and, while frowned upon in the Muggle World, it was altogether embraced within the Wizarding World. Love was love, and affection was affection, and if you found it with someone of the same gender, there were ways to get around the problem of producing an heir, which was an issue with Muggles with the same inclinations.

“Ah, Severus, old friend,” Lucius said, stepping into the guest suite that Severus always occupied whilst visiting the manor, all without knocking. “Ah... Perhaps something a bit more lively than the traditional black and white this evening?”

Severus met Lucius’s eyes in the mirror. “Narcissa selected these robes herself with my assistance at Madam Malkin’s last fortnight,” he responded levelly.

Lucius looked slightly annoyed, but he would never go against his wife’s tastes. “Oh, very well then,” he said, obviously attempting to calm himself down.

“Relax,” Severus ordered, affixing the man with a stern glare. “You know as well as I do how happy young Draco is.”

“Draco is always happy when you are sharing in his company, Severus,” Lucius replied, smiling in an indulgent manner at his closest friend. “You are his godfather, after all. And he quite looks up to you...” He shook his head. “You’ve had conversations with young Ginevra since Draco announced his intentions...”

Severus gave a nod. “I have. Lovely young woman, to say the least. I trust you have heard Narcissa’s glowing reception of her?”

“Constantly,” Lucius responded, yet appeared to be chewing lemons. “She always wanted more than one child, and was devastated when the healer had to take her womb after Draco...” Lucius immediately straightened himself upwards. “I suppose she thinks that, due to the fact that the Weasley family had seven children, then perhaps Draco and Ginevra...”

“Ginny,” Severus said, cutting him off, and Lucius looked up at him. “You will not endear yourself to her if you insist upon referring to her by her full name. She much prefers ‘Ginny’, for she told me herself that her mother calls her ‘Ginevra’ when she was put out with her during her childhood. I don’t think she likes the entirety of her name very much because of that.”

Lucius blinked. “I had not considered this,” he said softly, and proceeded to pace the lavish guest suite, back and forth, back and forth... “What else can you tell me about her, Severus?” he asked, never breaking in his steps. “Tell me, please.”

“She’s very fond of Quidditch, as far as I know, and played Chaser at Hogwarts.”

“More,” Lucius said, finally stopping mid-step. “I must know more, Severus. If she is to be my daughter-in-law, I must be prepared.”

Severus smirked; Lucius could be generous when he wanted to be. “Very well. She has informed me that she will continue to wear her hair down when she is married, but for special occasions outside of the manor,” he said, and Lucius looked shocked at the proclamation. “Furthermore, she has a Puffskein called Arnold. You recall that small ball of purple fluff which you’ve commented on more than once, that appears to reside upon her shoulder? That’s him.”

Lucius looked amazed; other than the occasional visits of Crookshanks, the half-Kneazle familiar belonging to Miss Hermione Granger, Ginny’s dearest friend and future sister-in-law, to the manor, there were no familiars in residence. Well, that appeared to be about to change... “Is there anything further?” he asked softly.

“She’s quite fond of cats herself,” Severus replied, seeing Lucius’s line of thought quite clearly with a small smile. “Methinks she will likely want some eventually.”

Lucius gave a timid nod; Draco would be residing in the west wing of the manor upon his marriage to Ginny, and would also be gifted Black Park—a residence that Narcissa had gotten upon her marriage to Lucius some years before. Black Park had subsequently become the secondary Malfoy residence, and was stipulated that the eldest child of each family would receive it as a wedding gift.

“And children?” Lucius whispered. “She does want children?”

“She does,” Severus confirmed, knowing that Lucius would do virtually anything to preserve the Malfoy name. “However, she will utilize Contraceptive Charms until after her commencement from Hogwarts in June. She hardly wants to be with child when she completes her NEWTs,” he told his friend.

“No, of course not,” Lucius said softly, shaking his head. “Her mother is quite accomplished at cooking and knitting... Does Ginny do either?”

“She is proficient in both, and is exceptional in embroidery,” Severus told him. “In fact, she makes Quidditch throws every Christmas for the teams at Hogwarts.”

“What classes does she enjoy?”

“Charms, potions, and defense,” Severus informed him. “She’s planning on taking her NEWTs in all three, plus Care of Magical Creatures, alchemy, herbology, and history of magic.”

“Alchemy?” Lucius intoned, knowing quite well how much Draco enjoyed the subject.

“It was how Ginny and Draco got to know one another on a deeper level,” Severus explained. “It was decided by Albus that the varying years would be paired up for tutoring purposes, with Gryffindor and Slytherin House being one half, and Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw being the other. It was also encouraged that the students select a tutor for a different house,” he went on. “Draco helped Ginny in alchemy and potions, while Ginny assisted Draco in charms and defense. It was through her that Draco did so well on his own examinations.”

“Given his position at St. Mungo’s, I’m quite positive that you’re right,” Lucius replied with an affirmative nod, very pleased that Draco had a good position as a healer in the Janus Thickey Ward at the wizarding hospital. Lucius himself had wondered if Draco would follow in his father’s footsteps and join the lucrative position on the Board of Governors for Hogwarts, but it seemed that his son’s talents lay elsewhere, given his charisma and apparently excellent bedside manner.

“At least you know one thing already,” Severus said, and Lucius snapped quickly back to his dearest friends’ attention. “Ginny looks absolutely smashing in Slytherin green.”

Lucius grinned at him. “You’re absolutely correct, Severus,” he replied.

~*~

Once Harry, Ron, and Hermione arrived by Floo in the antechamber of Malfoy Manor, a house-elf promptly popped into view to take their fur-lined cloaks. Hermione bit her lip and said nothing, as Harry and Ron ushered her towards the main ballroom. They stood in the receiving line, where many of the guests were various Hogwarts alumni, and awaited their turn, the stone walls awash with candlelight.

“Lord Blaise Zabini, heir to the House of Zabini, escorting his betrothed, Lady Daphne Greengrass, joint-heir to the House of Greengrass,” said the head butler of Malfoy Manor, and Harry and Ron rolled their eyes as the pair of Slytherins in their year stepped into the ballroom ahead of them. “Lord Gregory Goyle and his husband, Lord Vincent Crabbe,” said the butler, and Harry and Ron shared a gag at the notion that Draco’s own cronies had ended up together as a couple, prompting Hermione to elbow them both in the ribs. “Lord Theodore Nott, Heir to the House of Knott, and his lady wife, Lady Pansy Parkinson,” the man continued, and, this time, it was Hermione who shuddered. “Lord Dean Thomas and his husband, Lord Seamus Finnigan,” the butler continued. “Lord Neville Longbottom, Heir to the House of Longbottom, escorting his betrothed, Lady Luna Lovegood, Heir to the House of Lovegood,” came the voice of the butler, and Harry, Ron, and Hermione breathed a sigh of relief that they wouldn’t be alone that evening inside the massive ballroom. “Lord Harry Potter, Marquess Godric’s Hollow,” said the butler as the trio stepped forward. “Master Ronald Weasley, escorting his betrothed, Miss Hermione Granger,” he finished, and they stepped down inside the ballroom.

“Blimey, thought it’d never be our turn,” Ron muttered.

“Honestly, Ronald,” Hermione said, leading them over to the reception table.

“Master Fred Weasley, escorting Miss Alicia Spinnet,” came the butler’s voice from behind the trio. “Master George Weasley, escorting Miss Angelina Johnson,” he continued. “Sir Lee Jordan, escorting his betrothed, Miss Patricia Stimpson...”

“Bloody hell, how many people did the Malfoy’s invite?!” Ron bemoaned.

Hermione rolled her eyes. “Absolutely nothing will be this extravagant when we become man and wife,” she vowed, taking up a glass of port wine.

“We couldn’t possibly afford it,” Ron said ruefully.

“Master William Weasley, escorting his wife, Mrs. Fleur Delacour-Weasley,” came the voice of the butler once again. “Master Charles Weasley, escorting Sir Andre Egwu. Master Percy Weasley, escorting his betrothed, Miss Audrey Hayhurst. Squire Arthur Weasley, escorting his lady wife, Dame Molly Weasley...”

“Andre Egwu?” Hermione asked, her brows knitting together at that. “Why does that name sound so familiar?”

“Had you read the forward in the latest edition of _Quidditch Through the Ages_ , about modern Quidditch stars,” Harry responded, a smile upon his face, “you would know that Andre was in Charlie’s year at Hogwarts.”

“A Ravenclaw,” Ron said, smiling in Charlie’s direction and waving at him. “Mum and Dad look absolutely beside themselves.”

“They really want him to settle down, and not be alone in Romania forever,” said Hermione softly, as she watched Squire Weasley and Dame Molly greeting their second son and his companion that evening. “Perhaps this one will last...”

“Lord Anthony Goldstein, Heir to the House of Goldstein, escorting his lady wife, Lady Susan Bones,” came the butler’s voice from overhead. “Lord Michael Corner, Heir to the House of Corner, escorting his betrothed, Lady Lisa Turpin. Sir Ernie Macmillan, escorting his lady wife, Dame Hannah Abbott. Sir Justin Finch-Fletchley, escorting his betrothed, Miss Mandy Brocklehurst...”

“Where’s Ginny?” Ron asked softly.

Hermione rolled her eyes. “Are you daft, Ronald? She’s likely in seclusion with Lady Malfoy until she and Draco can be formally presented...”

“Why doesn’t Lucius have to be in seclusion?” Harry asked, nodding to where the host of that evening’s party stood, beside the arch of a doorway on the opposite side of the grand ballroom, in deep conversation with a man who boasted shoulder-length black hair.

“Tradition,” Hermione informed him, clicking her tongue impatiently. “Look. Molly’s already vanished from Arthur’s side.”

“Where’s Mum gone, then?!” Ron demanded.

Hermione gritted her teeth. “She’s going to be with Lady Malfoy and Ginny, of course. Like many brides-to-be, Ginny may have nerves, or just wants some company...” She cut herself off then, as she felt a tugging at her skirts, and lowered her eyes. “Oh, hello,” she said, and gave a small smile to the house-elf at her feet. “Is everything all right?”

“Yes, Miss Granger,” the elf squeaked. “Tiffy is to bring you to Miss Weasley...”

“Oh. Right,” Hermione responded, and handed Harry what remained of her port, before she accepted the house-elf’s hand and popped away.

“Do you know who he is?” Harry asked Ron quietly, and nodded back to where Lucius was standing with the tall, dark stranger. “That gentleman over there...”

Ron easily followed Harry’s gaze and shook his head, just as the butler announced that Headmaster Dumbledore had arrived with his husband, Gellert Grindelwald, from behind them. “No, I don’t, I’m sorry,” he said quietly, as Minerva McGonagall, their former Head of House, arrived with her own husband, Horace Slughorn, Head of Slytherin and potions professor for Hogwarts. “Hope Hermione isn’t gone for too long...”

“Why?” Harry asked.

“Presenting Baroness Bathilda Bagshot,” proclaimed the butler loudly, and it was then that an audible hush immediately seemed to encapsulate the ballroom.

“Her,” Ron said, grinning broadly.

“Good evening, my boys,” Albus Dumbledore said, moving to stand before Harry and Ron, which directly blocked their view of Baroness Bagshot. “I trust you remember my husband, Viscount Gellert Grindelwald...”

“A pleasure, my lord,” Harry and Ron said together, with Ron bowing deeply, and Harry merely lowering his head, due to their respective ranks.

“My lord marquess, Master Ronald,” said Viscount Grindelwald with a kind smile. “I trust you are both well.”

“A bit apprehensive for my only sister’s upcoming nuptials, my lord,” Ron responded, his tone eloquent.

“Naturally, Master Ronald, naturally,” Viscount Grindelwald responded, and gave a kindly smile in Harry’s direction. “Flying solo tonight, my lord?”

“Harry, please, my lord,” he said quickly, still unused to his title as a whole. “And yes. As much as Squire Arthur and Dame Molly wish for me to settle down, not one gentleman has permanently caught my fancy, I’m afraid...”

“It will come, my boy,” Headmaster Dumbledore assured him.

“How is Lord Aberforth?” Ron asked.

“Had to decline tonight’s invitation,” Viscount Grindelwald responded, and shook his head. “A pity, but the Hog’s Head Inn apparently has an ample amount of customers at the weekend, so I cannot fault my brother-in-law entirely.”

“Lady Ariana is doing well, I trust?” Harry wanted to know.

Headmaster Dumbledore smiled indulgently at the mention of his youngest sibling. “Oh, yes, the chill she got was aided by Madam Pomfrey promptly as ever...”

Ron grinned. “She is your sister-in-law, headmaster,” he said in a rather lascivious manner, which prompted both the headmaster and Viscount Grindelwald to laugh. “I am quite positive she has given you leave to call her ‘Poppy’...”

“She does keep Aberforth on his toes, I grant you,” said the old headmaster with a nod. “But old Kennilworthy whisked Ariana away for a long-overdue vacation to the seaside.”

“Have we lost you, Harry?” Viscount Grindelwald asked, and peered in the direction that Harry was staring in. “Ah. I see.”

“What?” Harry asked, his green eyes quickly snapping back towards his former headmaster and his husband, his cheeks aflame.

“Ah, a wonderful idea indeed,” said Headmaster Dumbledore, rubbing his aged hands together. “Come along now, Harry,” he said, and both he and Viscount Grindelwald took ahold of Harry’s arms and proceeded to haul him unceremoniously across the room towards where Lucius and the mysterious stranger were still standing, despite his protests and his pleas for Ron to attempt to help him, all which fell on deaf ears. “Ah, Lucius.”

“Albus,” said Lucius Malfoy warmly. “And Gellert, I see. I am so pleased that the pair of you could make it here this evening. Narcissa, Draco, and Ginny will be overjoyed.”

“And Severus,” the headmaster said, Harry’s heart falling somewhere near his feet, as the man addressed the raven-haired gentleman before them. “It has been far too long. Horace would like to speak with you at some point this evening...”

“If he wishes to finally revise the curriculum to that of the eighteenth century, the man knows where to find me,” said the gentleman called Severus, in the most sensual, velvet-lined voice Harry had ever heard.

“You’re a potions master,” he breathed, his cheeks blooming as hot as they had ever done once the gentleman called Severus gazed down at him.

“Indeed,” Severus responded, and Harry felt relieved as the headmaster and his husband let him go, and began pulling Lucius in the opposite direction, talking about the Board of Governors or some such nonsense. “And who might you be? Pardon me, I was not here when the Malfoy’s butler announced you.”

“Just Harry,” Harry replied, and bowed to Severus. “And you are?”

“Severus,” came Severus’s reply, his lip curling in a challenge. He slowly put out his hand—and what an elegant hand it was—and Harry mirrored his movements exactly, and clasped the appendage that was on offer. “Pleasure to make your acquaintance, Harry. And are you affiliated with the bride or the bridegroom?”

“Both,” Harry told the man, shivering when the pad of his thumb caressed at his knuckles. “I attended Hogwarts with them, and was in Draco’s year.”

“Ah. You are eighteen, then.”

“Yes. Five months ago or so,” Harry said softly.

“Which is why, therefore, I must ask, Harry, why you would willingly converse with a man as old as I am,” Severus said.

“You are not old, Severus,” Harry told him, and felt delicious at the sensation that the man had not dropped his hand just yet. “Hardly old... My godfather is around your age, and I don’t find him to be old.”

“Your godfather?”

“Baron Remus Lupin,” Harry responded, and nodded to where the man stood, with his wife, Baroness Nymphadora Tonks. Their son, Teddy, was likely at home for the evening with Tonks’ parents, as he could still be fussy around crowds.

Severus promptly dropped his hand, his eyes going cold. “Forgive me, _Harry_ , but I am afraid that the hour has arrived for me to stand with Lucius when the betrothed couple is announced to you all,” he said curtly, before turning around in a sweeping of black velvet dress robes, and marched over to the Earl of Malfoy.

Harry stumbled backwards, unsure what he had said or done to set off Severus like that, and silently made his way back towards Ron, nearly losing his footing as he stepped through the crowd of guests. He felt relieved to see that Hermione had been returned, but she was staring at him with concern.

“Harry, what happened?” she whispered.

“Headmaster Dumbledore and Viscount Grindelwald hauled him off to meet the gentleman over there. The one that’s standing beside Lucius,” Ron promptly whispered to her.

Hermione followed Ron’s pointing finger, after shoving it downwards, and caught a glimpse of the gentleman in question. “What was his name, Harry?”

“Severus,” Harry whispered.

Hermione’s eyes widened. “That would have been Severus Snape, the Duke of the House of Prince,” she breathed, and Harry’s eyes snapped to hers.

“The inventor for the cure of lycanthropy?” he whispered back.

“The same,” Hermione said, and peered over at him again. “He seemed to exit your conversation in quite a bit of a hurry, Harry. What happened between the pair of you?”

Harry bit his lower lip, suddenly seeing that the man’s dark eyes had found him within the crowd, and turned back to Hermione, shaking his head. “I do not know,” he said softly. “I merely informed him that Remus was my godfather...”

Hermione’s brows knit together at that. “I can hardly see why his test subject for what made him a very wealthy wizard would be seen as a terrible topic of discussion,” she murmured.

“Remus is a baron,” Ron said softly, “and Severus is a duke, plus Harry a marquess. Perhaps he thought that Remus, despite all he’s done for him, is beneath them...”

“But I didn’t tell Severus what my title or rank was,” Harry said desperately.

“Harry, _Witch Weekly_ does a two-page article on you at least once a fortnight,” said Hermione gently. “No one has your eyes, as far as I’ve seen. Despite the mask, you can still see your eyes, love. I’m quite positive Severus figured it out.”

Harry sighed, rolling his shoulders. “That’s what I’m worried about,” he whispered, as the candles dimmed slightly, and their attention was turned to the doorway for the announcement of the Malfoys.

~*~

Severus stood beside the archway of the inner ballroom entrance, awaiting Lucius to give up on the pageantry and just announce Draco and Ginny already. He was gritting his teeth, hating himself for being swayed by the most beautiful green eyes he had ever seen. The moment that Harry— _Potter_ , he corrected himself—had informed him that none other than Baron Remus Lupin was his godfather, he cursed himself for not figuring it out immediately. No one other than Miss Lily Evans, the daughter of a pair of Muggles, who had lived close by Spinner’s End where Severus himself had grown up, had had such eyes. Severus and Lily had lost touch slowly but surely during their Hogwarts years, with Lily falling easily into the Gryffindor crowd, and Severus allowed himself to be taken beneath Lucius Malfoy’s wing.

Severus recalled the cruel nature of James Potter, Harry’s own father, and his close friend, Sirius Black, and though it ironic that the both of them were now deceased. All Severus had truly wanted was to read his potions books in peace, and perhaps annotate certain sections and come up with better recipes. However, neither Potter or Black would stand for that, and would constantly taunt him, with Remus remaining stoically in the background, never lifting a finger to help, despite his status as a Prefect for Gryffindor.

Pushing the thought from his mind and plastering a smile on his face, Lucius had given him the signal that they were about to announce Draco and Ginny. Narcissa had inconspicuously joined them beforehand, so as to not draw attention away from her son and his intended. A hush fell over the ballroom then, as the lute quartet began plucking away, and as the double doors came swinging open, revealing Draco, who was resplendent in green and silver, and Ginny, who stole a number of guests’ breath away in her dark green gown.

“Friends, family, relatives, and guests,” Lucius said, with Narcissa holding onto his arm with a triumphant smile on her face, “we bid you to welcome the guests of honor. Our son, Draco Lucius Malfoy, Heir to the Earldom of Malfoy, and his betrothed, Miss Ginevra Molly Weasley,” he said proudly.

Severus noted that Ginny’s parents, Squire and Dame Weasley, who standing nearby, were a mixture of joy and sadness. He noticed that the squire was doing his best to quiet his wife, who was sobbing and dabbing a handkerchief at her eyes.

“We permit you to continue to indulge in the wonderful food we have on offer,” Lucius continued, his voice managing to drown out Dame Molly’s sobs, “while we ready dinner in the banqueting hall just beyond.”

“In the meantime,” Narcissa said, smiling at all the guests, “we urge you to dance, if it pleases you to do so, or to take part in light conversation.”

Severus held in a grimace as Draco and Ginny stepped up towards the dancefloor first, and began waltzing elegantly. Lucius and Narcissa, and then Squire Weasley and Dame Molly, moved towards the area next, and then came the couple who were standing with Harry; he recognized the bushy-haired girl as one Horace had spoken about more than once, as well as in Ginny’s company. That must have been Miss Hermione Granger, then, and her companion would have been Ginny’s next eldest brother, Ronald, who was her husband-to-be.

Severus watched then as various couples proceeded to occupy the dancefloor; Baron Lupin and his young wife, several Slytherins from Hogwarts, Albus and Gellert, Minerva and Horace, the rest of the Weasley clan, and a handful of other Hogwarts alumni. It shocked him when Harry slipped back towards the wall, seemingly content to watch the proceedings. Upon closer examination, however, Severus could detect the wistfulness in the younger man’s expression, and a desire for something he’d not yet had. Severus watched then as several eligible bachelors made themselves known to the young man, and jealousy burned within his breast at the sight of it, only to be filled with relief when each one was turned down in quick succession.

However, it was when a strapping Quidditch player, known as Oliver Wood, who would have been captain of Gryffindor’s team during Harry’s first years at Hogwarts, made himself known to the younger man. Severus inwardly seethed as familiarity passed over Harry’s features, and he conversed affably with the man. Certainly, as Marquis Wood, young Oliver was a decent enough catch for Harry, but Severus couldn’t stand the way that Oliver was looking at Harry and, just like that, he came to a decision.

“Portree has been nothing but welcoming towards me,” Wood was telling Harry as Severus softly approached. “I can’t tell you how much I’ve learned, but I know that I’m still a beginner when it comes to skill...”

“Quidditch was never the same after your commencement,” Harry responded. “Angelina and I had different strategies, of course, but Ginny’s been doing excellently.”

“That’s what I’ve heard, yes,” Wood continued. “The training schedule has been absolutely draining, so I haven’t been back to Hogwarts for a game in a while.” He hesitated for a moment with a small smile. “The last time I was at Hogwarts was to escort Katie Bell to the Yule Ball, and that’s where I saw you dance with Miss Parvati Patil...”

Harry blushed, and if Severus didn’t find it to be the most fetching thing he’d ever seen... “I don’t think that ‘dance’ is the right word here, Oliver,” he said softly. “Fumbling along the dancefloor is more like it. I hardly paid attention in Professor McGonagall’s lessons to really be proficient on the subject...”

“I had heard about Lord Diggory throwing you over for Lady Chang,” Wood said in a tone that was meant to be sympathetic, and the pair of them locked eyes with a rather attractive couple, who were spinning elegantly upon the dancefloor themselves.

“It is what it is, I’m afraid,” Harry responded.

“Have you found someone that yet strikes your fancy?” Wood questioned.

Harry shook his head. “No, I...” He sighed. “The one gentleman that remotely did so hurried away from me in a rather dramatic fashion, I’m afraid, so I hardly say that striking fancy was something on his end as well.”

“Perhaps I can be of assistance,” Wood said, and held out his hand. “Would you do me the honor of having this dance?”

Harry hesitated. “Well, I...”

“Excuse me, my lord,” Severus said, stepping down into their domain, and Wood immediately backed off from Harry, “but I am afraid you are acting under the misapprehension that the Marquess of Godric’s Hollow does not have an escort this evening.”

“My lord duke,” Wood said quickly, bowing to Severus.

“Quite,” Severus said, turning to Harry, and offered his own hand. “Would you care to do me the honor, Harry?” he asked, his eyes riveting from behind his black mask.

“The honor would be mine,” Harry responded softly, and took ahold of Severus’s offered hand, not even sparing Oliver a second glance as they advanced upon the dancefloor. “Why did you do that, Severus?” he whispered, looking up at the man, as he allowed himself to be led.

Severus smiled down at Harry. “I do not like other gentlemen messing with what is mine.”

“Yours?” Harry breathed, flushing. “I hardly think...”

“Or, rather, what I wish to be mine,” Severus said smoothly, “or what I intend to make mine, in the very near future.”

Harry’s Adam’s apple bobbed from within his throat at the declaration. “You hardly know me, sir,” he whispered.

Severus smiled. “I’ve already spoken to Lucius to permit me to not only escort you into the feast, but to also be seated beside you. Not to worry, Harry. I intend to get to know you extensively this evening, and the night is yet young.”

Harry and Severus finished the dance, and continued to dance each dance until Lucius and Narcissa announced that the feast was served. Harry flushed becomingly as Severus gently took ahold of his arm, and led him into the banqueting hall. Not knowing where he was to sit, he permitted Severus to guide him along the long table with the white linens, silver, and various pieces of china upon it, to a quiet space towards the back of the room. Harry smiled and thanked him when his chair was pulled out, and slipped into the seat, waiting for Severus to sit beside him, and quickly placed his serviette into his lap.

“So, what do you find occupies your time when you’re not here supporting the sister of your dearest friend?” Severus asked, as conversations lulled around them.

“She is practically my own sister as well,” Harry responded, and Severus raised his eyebrows at the statements. “My mother and father passed from this world and into the next plane when I was eleven, from Wizard’s Flu, and so the Weasleys adopted me and took me into their home. I was raised beside Ron, Ginny, and the rest of the Weasley children as their brother.”

Severus looked amazed, and nodded his head. “And your other activities?”

“I’m fond of Quidditch, but more as a friendly game, and not so much a competition.”

“And other than Quidditch?”

“Reading,” Harry said with a smile, finding himself more and more at ease with Severus as their conversation continued. “Other than the charitable organizations I’m in charge of, I like to read about various subjects. Medicinal remedies of all kinds—potions, alchemy, herbs and whatnot... It’s a fascinating subject, and I can never get enough of it.”

Severus briefly went silent as their first course, Lorraine soup, was brought to the table. He inhaled the scent of cream and potatoes, and was tickled that Harry seemed to enjoy the dish as much as he did. “Do you have a familiar?”

“Yes, a snowy owl called Hedwig,” Harry informed him brightly. “She was a birthday gift from Hagrid... Do you know Hagrid?”

“Yes, I’m quite familiar with Hagrid,” Severus told him, having to admit to himself that he had been fond of the half-giant since meeting him over two decades ago. “That was quite generous of him.”

“I’d met him several times growing up, and he was so torn up about me losing my mother and father that he surprised me in Diagon Alley just before first-year, and got her for me,” Harry explained, sadness in his eyes. “As much as I love Hedwig, I don’t particularly enjoy the reasoning for why I have her now.”

“No, of course,” Severus said softly. “I was not close to either one of my parents. My mother was a witch from a Pureblood family, but was disowned when she opted to marry my father, a Muggle, despite having a Pureblood match lined up for her. As such, she was forced to reject magic completely, and my father was not best pleased when I turned out to be a wizard as well. I cannot tell you how relieved I am to be out of that house.”

“Not a home, then?” Harry asked him.

Severus shook his head. “Certainly not a home.”

A platter of glazed root vegetables were served next, with Harry, Severus, and the rest of the surrounding guests utilizing their knives and forks to cut bite-sized pieces of them. Upon the plate were parsnips, turnips, carrots, and radishes. Harry liked the sensation of the softness of the vegetation in his mouth, but was amused that Severus didn’t appear to be as enamored with the dish as he had with the soup.

“Reminds me of my childhood, where food, much like everything else, had little imagination to it,” he informed Harry softly.

Several trenchers entered the room then after the root vegetable course, with the vegetable platters vanishing and returning into the kitchen. The trenchers were placed on varying locations along the long table, with multiples of everything, to ensure that everyone could sample whatever and however much they liked. In one, there was an impressive display of roast mutton; in another, a goose; in a third, a chicken; a fourth, a rabbit; and then a traditional roast rounded them all out, much to Ron’s delight from across the table. The plates for the main dishes were charmed to fill with potatoes, and everything was washed down with expensive and delicious elf-made wine. Baskets of bread adorned the long table every few feet, and Harry was just beginning to feel a bit overwhelmed.

“Will you be returning to Godric’s Hollow this evening?” Severus asked.

Harry shook his head. “No. I’ve a room here for the evening.”

“As do I,” Severus informed him. Leaning closer, he whispered in Harry’s ear, “Which wing have you been placed in?”

“The north wing,” Harry whispered back.

Severus smiled; Lucius and Narcissa occupied the east wing, and Draco the west, while the north and south were utilized for company of varying importance, with the north wing reserved for the higher ranking guests. “I, too, am in the north.”

“Are you?” Harry whispered, struggling to focus upon his meat.

“I am,” Severus informed him. “I would like to claim you this night, Harry. Might I be permitted to do so?”

Harry shivered, Severus’s breath hot upon his neck. “Yes,” he said softly. “Yes, Severus. You may claim me.”

~*~

Severus pulled back so that he was a respectable distance away from Harry, and they began to talk about more appropriate topics. Once the meat, potatoes, and bread were removed, plum pudding, fruit cake, macaroons, sugar biscuits, jeweled fruit, and sugared flowers were placed upon delicate plates before the guests. Harry sipped his wine, white this time to accompany the sweetness at the end of the meal, and felt the sensation of Severus’s hand upon his leg.

Harry turned and looked up at the older man, and smiled softly at him. He forced himself to eat as much of the dessert as he was able without getting sick, before Lucius called an end to the meal. He informed the guests Floo-ing or Apparating home that evening would be seen to by the house-elves, and that a map was being drawn up for those remaining. Harry felt Severus’s eyes upon him then, and Harry felt relieved that he had asked Dobby to pack him a bag and to make sure it was delivered to his guest room at the manor that evening.

Harry found his way to the north wing without incident, and was pleased at the thrill of the hand, belonging to Severus, upon the small of his back. Harry let himself and the man into his bedroom, and turned around, staring up at the man, who slowly lifted his hands to remove his mask for the first time. He bit down hard on his lower lip, before he said softly, “I’ve not done this before,” and hated it that his voice trembled ever so slightly, as he did not wish to appear childish to someone as worldly as Severus Snape.

“With a gentleman?”

“Or with anyone.”

Severus smiled softly then, and crossed completely towards the younger man, and lifted his hand to lightly caress his cheek. “Then I will delight in being the first.”

Harry lifted his own hands to remove Severus’s mask, and was pleased at what he saw, and thus permitted himself to be stripped slowly, and delighted in Severus’s hands touching him everywhere, where no one had ever touched before. Harry watched, rapt, as Severus’s lips descended around one of his nipples, his tongue and teeth teasing it lightly, and his eyes hastily rolled back upwards and into his head. “Severus...”

“Anything you want, Harry,” Severus breathed, his breath hot against his skin. “Anything you want that is in my power to give you, you shall have...”

“Nakedness,” Harry said softly back. “I want us to be naked together...”

Severus smirked against his skin, causing Harry’s toes to curl, and Severus expertly snapped his fingers, leaving them both naked. A second snap of his fingers dimmed the candles throughout the guest suite, and a roaring fire blazed to life from within the marble fireplace. Without missing a beat, Severus lifted Harry up into his arms, bringing him over to the massive canopy bed with white bedding and green velvet curtains, and laid him down in its very center.

Harry promptly reached for Severus, and his unspoken wish was granted, with Severus climbing on top of him upon the bed, and cradling him in his arms. Harry swiftly arched his back, and Severus leaned down, teasing the line of Harry’s lips for a moment, before Harry’s lips slowly parted for his, and Severus experimentally dipped his tongue inside the hot cavern that was Harry’s mouth.

The older man knew he was on the right track when a small moan escaped from Harry’s lips and his legs wound around his torso. Severus used his hand to gently tease at Harry’s nipples, and caressed his sides and flanks before he broke away from that tempting mouth. Smiling down at the younger man, he pressed kiss after kiss down the length of his body. He started at his ear, and licked at the shell before sucking the lobe into his mouth. He then nipped at Harry’s neck repeatedly before Harry grunted, obviously wanting something else, and permitted his tongue to lave at his nipples for a few moments thereafter.

“Oh, Severus,” Harry murmured, running his fingers through his hair.

“Yes, Harry,” Severus whispered back. He continued in this slow and teasing manner, but it was when he went below and gently parted Harry’s pert arse cheeks that the younger man let out an uncertain noise. “It’s all right, Harry. Relax.” He smiled genuinely when Harry listened to him, and bent his head to complete his task.

“What are...? Severus!”

Severus smirked against the wrinkled opening of Harry’s arse, and licked around it in its entirety before he gradually speared it with his tongue. He did his best not to chuckle aloud, somehow managing to achieve self-control, when Harry nearly launched himself off the bed at the sensations which were likely coursing through him. He continued in this manner, wanting Harry to be as loose and as relaxed as possible when he finally took him.

“Severus... Oh,” Harry moaned from above him. “So good...”

Severus focused deeply when he registered the notion that Harry was slowly but surely becoming boneless beneath him, and wandlessly and wordlessly summoned his lubricant. It came with a smack through the Floo, and Harry looked altogether pleased with the situation. “It will likely be a bit uncomfortable, although there is a numbing agent within the formula,” Severus informed him, and gently maneuvered Harry’s legs so that his feet were flat on the bed. “I will need you to bear down on my fingers if it becomes uncomfortable, Harry. I would not wish you to tear from my ministrations.”

Harry nodded; he didn’t fancy getting torn either. “I understand, Severus.”

Severus uncapped the lubricant and pushed himself upwards for a moment, teasing Harry’s lips for a moment, permitting their tongues to tangle together before he broke the kiss and moved himself back downwards to inspect Harry’s hole. Dipping his fingers into the jar, he teased the opening to Harry’s body for a moment, making sure that he was ready, before he gently put a finger inside the younger man. “Remember what we discussed, Harry.”

Harry nodded once again, and bore down on the fingers. He continued to do so as Severus added a second and then a third, and then let out an unbecoming whimper as Severus pulled out all three in one go. He was about to protest the action, however, when he saw Severus slicking up his engorged member, he moaned down low somewhere in his throat. “Please,” he murmured, and reached for the man again.

Severus complied, taking ahold of Harry’s hands as he pushed forward, teasing at Harry’s opening with the head of his swollen cock. Finally, when he couldn’t stand it any longer, he breeched Harry, entering him little by little. “Remember,” he said softly, and Harry nodded, doing exactly as Severus had told him to. “I’ll remain still until I can move. Only by your word will I do so, Harry.”

Harry nodded, settling down onto the particularly large goose feather bolsters of the bed, trying to assuage the pain he felt within. Finally, the pain subsided to a dull ache, and he arched upwards then, digging his heels into Severus’s arse. “Please,” he moaned. “Please claim me and make love to me, Severus...”

Severus grunted at the heady sensation of Harry gripping him, and plunged back and forth to make it wonderful for him. Once he found the younger man’s prostate, the pair of them groaned together, never being so satisfied before, and also never wanting to give this up. Severus snapped his hips, going as deeply as he could inside the teenager, and Harry ripped his hands out from his, wrapping them around Severus’s body. Severus, in turn, yanked Harry upwards and pounded into him, their groans matched in each other’s ears.

“More,” Harry begged prettily. “Merlin, more...”

Severus went faster and deeper with any lover he had ever had, and Harry matched him thrust for thrust. He couldn’t believe that Harry was such a natural at this, and his heart ached at the notion that, perhaps, this would only be for one night. Jealousy burned within him at whomever Harry decided to take for a husband or wife—he was young yet, so he could decide that he wanted a wife as opposed to a husband. Pushing the thought from his mind, as well as the notion that Severus wanted to keep Harry for himself, Severus resolved to make this a memorable evening for the both of them.

Harry arched upwards one last time, a scream escaping from his throat, his eyes squeezed shut, as he came between them, spurting like a virgin fountain. This sent Severus over the edge as well, and he came deeply inside of Harry. Gently pulling himself out of the younger man, Severus dipped his head, cleaning Harry of his emission, before casting a Cleaning Charm upon them both.

“Are you leaving?” Harry whispered, and hated himself for sounding so unsure and deprived, not wanting to appear to be either, not to Severus.

“No,” Severus told him, wrapping the younger man up into his arms. “ _Nox_ ,” he whispered, and the pair were swathed in darkness.

~*~

It shouldn’t have surprised Harry that Severus was nowhere to be seen the following morning, as he had not sworn to stay forever. Cursing himself at his naïveté, Harry pushed himself from the canopied bed, deliberately not looking back at it as he gathered his things. He stepped through the Floo without bidding his hosts farewell, deciding to write a quick owl, letting them know he wasn’t feeling well, and that he would see them soon, likely.

It was intriguing, however, as winter bled into spring, and the commencement ceremony for Ginny and Luna drew closer that Harry himself was not feeling better. In fact, most of the food Dobby prepared for him caused him to vomit constantly. Despite urging from Ron, Hermione, Molly, Arthur, and even Ginny and Draco once or twice, none of them could convince him to even see Poppy at Hogwarts. It was humiliating as well, for Harry—who was normally quite a lean individual—had seemed to have some swelling within his abdomen, and resorted to using Concealment Charms whenever he went out in public.

The next public engagement he’d confirmed was shortly before Draco and Ginny’s wedding, which was Ginny and Luna’s commencement from Hogwarts. He arrived, pale and drawn, and did his best to ignore everyone’s stern or concerned looks. Once the ceremony had ended and Headmaster Dumbledore announced that the graduates were permitted to find their friends and family members, Harry was pulled to where Draco had caught up Ginny in his arms. This would be the final opportunity for them to see one another before their wedding, as was tradition, and the pair were positively beside themselves.

“Are you well, Harry?” asked Luna, who was holding Neville’s arm, and staring at him, while her father, Xenophilius, Earl of Lovegood, was speaking to Arthur close by. “You look much paler than when I last saw you... Are the three of you all right?”

Harry’s eyes widened. “The three of us?” he demanded. “What are you...?”

“Oh, yes, the three of you,” Luna responded delicately. “Although rare, pregnancies in wizards mean that both wizards used in the conception have powerful magical cores. These typically result in a full soulbond, plus a pregnancy, when deep affection for the other is at play. When these, plus fate, come out to play, twins are the result.”

Harry’s eyes widened completely then as he struggled to remain upright. Shaking his head and looking around, he noticed that Severus Snape himself was involved in a discussion with Lucius Malfoy and Horace Slughorn close by. He was vaguely aware of Ron, Hermione, Ginny, Draco, Neville, and Luna all following his gaze, and Luna nodding in understanding.

“Yes, that would do it,” she confirmed.

“Pardon me,” Harry said, feeling himself growing pale as he awkwardly excused himself from the group, hardly bearing the notion that Severus was staring at him through the crowd. Once he had broken away from the worst of it, Harry scampered as quickly as he could to the main gates of Hogwarts, flying through them, before he Disapparated.

It was a fortnight after the commencement ceremony that Remus came over to see him, and Harry had barely made it out of bed and made himself presentable. Once the Concealment Charm was properly in place, he made his way downstairs and into the parlor, and forced a smile onto his lips. “Good afternoon, Remus,” he said softly.

Remus embraced Harry, but quickly urged him into a chair when he saw the state he was in. “I am worried about you, Harry, and could not wait until the wedding later this evening to see you, I’m afraid. Tonks is worried for you as well.”

Harry shrugged; he had seen Poppy in the interim, and she had informed him that Luna was indeed correct—wizard pregnancies were a rare occurrence. However, another interesting thing was that wizards would carry towards the back, so they wouldn’t get as much kicking, but would get more backaches. A third thing that had shocked him was that wizard pregnancies didn’t last forty weeks, but usually somewhere around twenty-two to thirty weeks, depending upon the strength of the magical core, which would therefore feed into the development of the baby, or, in this case, babies.

“It cannot be helped,” Harry replied at last.

Remus sighed. “Ron and Hermione owled me,” he said softly.

Harry gritted his teeth. “I’ll bet they did...”

“They informed me of what Luna had to say at the graduation ceremony,” he went on. “Why did you not tell me before, Harry?”

Harry shrugged. “It didn’t matter. He left me in the morning, Remus. It’s not as if he was in it forever...”

“I’m afraid that neither you nor Severus has a choice in this matter, Harry,” Remus said gravely and, before he could lose his courage completely, he reached into an inner pocket of his robes and drew out a scroll of parchment, which was secured with a scarlet-colored silk ribbon. Carefully, he pulled the ribbon, unknotting it, and spread the scroll upon the table between them. “This was left by your parents before their deaths,” Remus said, and began to read aloud. “ _‘It is by our decree, by James Fleamont Potter, Marquess of Godric’s Hollow, and Lily Josephine Potter, Marchioness of Godric’s Hollow, that our son and heir, Lord Harry James Potter, be bonded in matrimony to Severus Tobias Snape, Duke of the House of Prince, on or before his twenty-first birthday. Although we ourselves do not believe he is the only choice for our son, we know in our hearts that he is the best one. Not only will his scruples and loyalty make him an excellent match for our only child, but it was their mutual reaction when they met for the first time, when Harry was but an infant, that we knew that they were soulmates. As such, they have been betrothed since Harry was six-months-old, and the bonding must take place as stated above. Signed and dated 17 November, 1775, witnessed by Viscount Albus Dumbledore, Viscount Gellert Grindelwald, Baron Remus Lupin, and Lady Minerva McGonagall’_ ,” Remus said, finishing the missive.

“What?” Harry breathed. “Then why did Severus...?”

“Your parents didn’t tell him,” Remus admitted, lowering his gaze. “They were able to secure your betrothal with copies of your magical signatures, with help from Albus. Neither of you were present for the betrothal ceremony, as you were not needed to be physically present complete such a thing.”

Harry shook his head, and got unsteadily to his feet. He took ahold of the parchment and tucked it away into his robe. “I have to ready myself for Draco and Ginny’s wedding, Remus,” he said, his voice not conveying any emotion. “I suppose I shall see you there.”

“Harry...”

“Dobby,” Harry called, and the house-elf immediately materialized in the parlor. “Please show Baron Lupin out. He was just leaving, and I have to prepare for the wedding.”

Dobby looked unsure, but led Remus over to the Floo while Harry stepped out of the parlor and up the stairs.

Harry pulled on the summer robes for the wedding, which, again, matched his eyes. He thought back to how simple things had been the December before, and longed for the days when secrets weren’t kept from him. Pushing the thought from his mind, he finished readying himself before he Floo’d directly to Malfoy Manor, and was led to the room where Draco was, as Harry had agreed, along with Ron, to stand up with him at the ceremony.

“All right there, Harry?” Draco asked, ever the healer.

Harry grimaced, but was doing better since Madam Pomfrey had prescribed the anti-nausea potions for him. “Attempting to be, Draco,” he responded.

Harry and Ron were escorting Luna and Hermione down the aisle respectively, as they were standing up for Ginny. Next came Arthur, who walked with Ginny, and Draco was standing immaculately beside the alter with the wizard from the Ministry’s Hall of Records. Harry deliberately didn’t make eye contact with Severus, who was sitting beside Lucius in the front row on Draco’s side of the manor’s garden. The Malfoys had spared no expense that day, and Ginny’s oval neckline wedding gown—white and made entirely out of lace, with a cream-colored silk ribbon around her middle—was no exception.

Harry resolutely stood up with Ron on behalf of Draco, never once looking over at Severus, although he could feel the man’s eyes trained upon his backside. Once the ceremony was over, and his duty completed, Harry wandered off towards the hedges, wanting more than anything to get out of there. He was considering leaving Godric’s Hollow entirely, and starting over somewhere else. He didn’t want to be a burden upon anyone, and that was exactly what he would be, given that Severus had left so unexpectedly the following day.

“Harry.”

Harry cursed himself and turned around, affixing Severus with a look. “My lord duke,” he responded coldly, wanting to put as much distance between the two of them as possible, knowing what the man must think of him.

“I detected your magical signature at Hogwarts recently.”

Harry deliberately avoided eye contact with the man. “Did you?”

“Yes. I was having tea with Horace to discuss his curriculum, as I’ve been doing these last several months. Once that man gets to discussing potions, one cannot get away.”

Harry gritted his teeth. “Well, I’m pleased to hear that you’re so occupied in doing something you clearly love. Now, if you’ll excuse me...”

“Harry, please wait,” Severus said, advancing upon him then and gently taking ahold of Harry’s arm, and not letting him go. “Horace unexpectedly summoned me that morning because there was an epidemic of Dragon Pox within the infirmary. I was not inoculated as a child, and so I got it as well. I was confined to my bed for weeks at a time, under quarantine, and, even after that, I had to assist Horace in finding a cure...”

Harry shook his head, and attempted to leave. “It doesn’t matter...”

“Please, Harry. It matters to me...”

“Stop,” Harry begged him, and wretched away, the piece of parchment falling from his robes then, and Harry flushed, knowing that only Dobby would have slipped it into his robes, for he knew he had placed it upon his bedside table before leaving.

Severus bent and picked it up, his eyes widening as he scanned the words, before locking his gaze onto Harry’s. “That is why we were so...” His lips clamped shut then. “Is this some kind of a joke to you?”

“No!” cried Harry, shaking his head. “You’ve got to believe me, I didn’t even know about it myself until this afternoon...”

Severus sighed. “I hardly remember such a ceremony...”

“That’s because the two of us weren’t needed,” Harry told him. “Remus told me himself when he brought that to me at the cottage earlier today. Headmaster Dumbledore apparently got his hands upon copies of our respective magical signatures...”

“Meaning that we were rendered null and void for the betrothal ceremony,” Severus said, and shook his head. “Yes, I see.”

“I don’t want you thinking that this has to change anything...”

Severus gazed up at Harry then, and blinked, looking confused as he stared at him. “Why does to appear as if you are utilizing a Glamor Spell?” he asked.

Harry gulped. “Severus, I’ve got to explain...”

“ _Revelio_ ,” Severus said, waving his hand, and Harry’s swollen belly came into view. Severus’s eyes widened then as he cautiously stepped forward. “Harry...”

“Yes, Severus,” he whispered, feeling more wretched than he’d ever had in his life before, and deliberately looked away from the man, not wanting to see the potential disappointment in his eyes.

Severus reached downwards then and gently tilted Harry’s chin up. “You’re thinking that I believe you’ve attempted to trap me...”

Harry sighed. “Yes, that is exactly what I am thinking,” he confessed.

“I take it, despite your adoption by the Weasley family, and living with your parents until their deaths, that you did not know that wizards could become pregnant?”

Harry shook his head. “No, I didn’t...”

Severus smiled, leaning down and brushing Harry’s lips with his. “This changes everything, and I decree that we be formally bonded at once.”

“Bonded?” Harry squeaked.

“Yes. I shall obtain a special license from the Ministry’s Hall of Records. We could be married by tomorrow, if you so wish it.”

“I don’t just want you doing this, just because I am your soulmate, or because we’re betrothed, or because of the babies...”

“I am not doing it for any of those reasons,” Severus told him. “I am doing it because I have fallen in love with you, Harry James Potter, and I would be honored if you would be my husband and my bond mate.”

Harry smiled then, his eyes filling with tears. “Yes,” he whispered. “Yes, Severus Tobias Snape, I will bond with you.”

“I do love you, my Harry.”

“And I love you, my Severus.”

Severus leaned down then, and kissed Harry deeply, but suddenly pulled back and away from him, looking perplexed. “Babies?” he asked.

“Oh, right,” Harry said, laughing slightly then. “It’s twins. Poppy examined me herself, and confirmed that we’re to have a son and a daughter by early July.”

Severus smiled then, and held Harry close. “You are truly my soulmate...”

Harry nodded. “Yes, I suppose I am...”

“Do you like Godric’s Hollow?”

“It’s lovely,” Harry confirmed, “although it has always been a house.”

Severus smiled, leaning back slightly to brush his lips upon Harry’s forehead. “I have found, since living there, that Prince Hall has the capability of turning into a home.”

Harry blinked. “Does it?”

The potions master nodded. “It does. I would like it if the pair of us moved into my ancestral family home, Harry.”

Harry grinned. “I would like that, Severus.”

“Our firstborn shall inherit the Prince titles, and our second shall inherit the Potter ones,” he declared, holding his intended close against him once again.

“Severus?”

“Yes?”

Harry peeked up at the man he loved, and found that he had never been happier and more loved as he did now, in his arms. “Let’s go home,” he whispered.

Severus nodded down at his soulmate. “Anything you want, Harry,” Severus breathed. “Anything you want that is in my power to give you, you shall have.”

“I wish to go home, then,” Harry told him.

Severus gathered Harry closer then, and uttered, “Prince Hall,” before the pair of them vanished with an almighty crack.

~*~

Harry sat in the parlor at Prince Hall, his son and daughter in the crook of each arm. The pair of them were finally asleep after one of their afternoon feedings. At over five months, they were each at a good weight; red-haired and black-eyed Francis Alexander Potter-Snape had come into the world just seven minutes after that of his older sister, raven-haired and green-eyed Lavinia Rebecca Potter-Snape. Harry and Severus had decided that their first children would have their own names, and not be named for anyone else. Since Lavinia had been born first, she would one day become Duchess of the House of Prince, while Francis would inherit the title of Marquess of Godric’s Hollow.

Harry was now on speaking terms with Remus again, but was more than a little relieved that Severus and Tonks had sided with him about the parchment. Although things had worked out for everyone in the end, Remus had agreed that keeping secrets wasn’t a good thing to do. Albus had gotten his ear taken off by Molly’s numerous Howlers, but she and Arthur couldn’t have been happier about Harry and Severus’s marriage, despite it apparently coming out of nowhere.

The Floo flared and Harry looked up, a smile automatically coming to his face as Severus stepped through and brushed the soot off from his robes. Dobby could be heard putting together dinner in the kitchen, and Hedwig was slumbering upon her perch on the other side of the parlor, due to the cold weather. Harry couldn’t help but flush, his heart hammering within his chest as his husband laid eyes upon him and their children for the first time.

“Good evening, husband,” Severus said reverently, stepping forward and kissing him, before pressing his lips onto Francis and Lavinia’s foreheads.

“Good evening to you as well, husband,” Harry responded, adjusting himself as Severus took Francis into his arms, and Harry settled back, Lavinia remaining where she was. “Promise me that Horace isn’t working you too hard...”

Severus smiled ruefully. “We’re nearly done updating the curriculum for advanced potions, so it shouldn’t be too much longer now,” he assured him, sitting beside him upon the couch and lifting his nose into the air. “What do I smell?”

“Dobby’s roast chicken,” Harry confirmed with a smile, “our favorite.”

Severus nodded in approval, staring down at his son for a moment. “And how are all our friends doing this winter?”

“Ginny’s still suffering from severe morning sickness,” Harry informed him, and shook his head in sympathy at the memories. “She can hardly wait until June when she gives birth to Scorpius. Of course, Lucius and Narcissa are ecstatic that, not only did she conceive quickly, but that their first child is going to be a boy...”

Severus smirked. “Purebloods,” he muttered. “And Ron and Hermione?”

“Due back from Paris from their honeymoon next week,” Harry confirmed, slightly envious of them. “Between you and me, they’ve started trying for a baby.”

“Wonderful news,” Severus said, nodding with approval. “And Neville and Luna?”

“Still exploring Scandinavia with Xenophilius for the Crumple-Horned Snorkack, I’m afraid,” Harry told his husband with a rueful smile, his eyes twinkling.

“Lord Longbottom’s loyalty knows no bounds,” Severus muttered.

“He is Earl Longbottom now, remember, love,” Harry reminded him gently, for Neville’s grandmother, Augusta, had passed away earlier that autumn.

“Right, of course,” Severus said with a nod.

Dobby stepped merrily into the room then, and smiled up at them both. “Master Severus, Master Harry, Dobby has finished preparing the dinner. Dobby will take Master Francis and Mistress Lavinia upstairs now.”

“Thank you, Dobby,” Harry and Severus said together, and handed over their children, who remained asleep, and watched as Dobby popped out of the parlor.

Severus got to his feet, stretching for a moment before he took ahold of Harry’s hand and pulled him upwards, pressing a kiss onto his wanting mouth. “I shall never get tired of the way you taste, my love,” he declared.

Harry shivered at the implication. “Neither will I.”

“Good. As we are bonded for life,” Severus said with a grin.

Harry enfolded himself in his husband’s arms, pressing his ear to his husband’s chest, and listened to his heart beating for a moment; it was still his favorite place in the world. “Happy anniversary, love,” he responded.

Severus’s arms came around his husband. “It is indeed,” he responded, “happy.”

Harry pulled back from his husband and took him by the hand, leading him into the kitchen at Prince Hall to enjoy the dinner that Dobby had made.

Outside, frost clung to the windows, while snow swirled through the air, before permitting itself to settle onto the grounds of the Prince ancestral family home. It had been a year since that night at Malfoy Manor, and although heartache and devastation had brought them from that day to this one, neither Harry or Severus would have changed a thing about it. With Harry’s Gryffindor courage and Severus’s Slytherin ambition, they had made a family, and a home, for themselves, which was something the pair had always wanted, and now had, in the other.

All was well.

THE END

**Author's Note:**

> *Ginny’s wedding dress can be found here: https://i.etsystatic.com/5587637/r/il/218bb8/792524852/il_570xN.792524852_kh2y.jpg
> 
> *The Wizard’s Flu Epidemic of 1775 – 1776 is a blatant homage to the 1775–1776 England influenza outbreak


End file.
